


Prison Paws

by Cheeriobeads



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Cant leave this at G tho, Cat!Eren, Levi - Freeform, M/M, ah what am i writing in the tags, but not yet, cause Levi has such a pottymouth, he can transform into a human, i guess ill end up writing smut later on, others will be added when they appear, so uh, sorry i saw this prompt and really wanted to write it
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-04-23
Updated: 2014-05-03
Packaged: 2018-01-20 11:26:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 4,161
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1508792
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cheeriobeads/pseuds/Cheeriobeads
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Unsociable inmate Levi is forced to make a new friend; one with four legs and a tail.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Meeting

**Author's Note:**

> Ah gosh, I saw news about prison inmates adopting animals to encourage better behaviour, and all I could imagine was grumpy Levi being forced to adopt a kitty Eren. My writing is trash please don't expect too much of meeee. Thank you!

   The shuffling of the guard’s thick steel toed boots and the metallic clink of his keys against cell bars stirred Levi from his fitful sleep. Opening his eyes to yet another day in this nightmare, he ran a hand through his hair, grimacing at the unruliness and- ew is that a cobweb-he counted the days until he was to be let out of this shithole. _Only 3 more weeks Levi, only 3 more weeks._

 Two years ago, he had been thrown in this place for his old gang ties, and ever since then, his temper had only flared. Cooped up in a tiny cell and forced to “socialize” and get along with all the low life scum living with him pushed him off the edge. Thankfully, his constant glare and murderous aura kept him out of trouble; mostly. Instead, he took out his anger in his art. Surprisingly, the prison let him bring in his easel and his supplies. His tiny cell was piled with charcoal boxes, pencils, watercolours, and various sketchbooks. His easel stood in the corner doubling as a hanger for his prison issued tacky orange jumper. The other half of his cell consisted of a lumpy grey bed and crisp white sheets that Levi folds to a perfect triangle every morning.

   Levi looked up while the guard walked by again, sneering at the man; he didn’t deserve to be cooped up in this shithole, but then again, where would he go afterwards? He could always call up Hanji, unless the shitty glasses got herself in trouble too. He narrowed his eyes and glared; what was this shitty guard doing? The clack of keys signaled the opening of his door. Puzzled, Levi stood and walked towards to guard, who held a cardboard box in his hands.

  “Pick one, its some sort of new program for inmates. Its yours to care for; box, and food will be brought by earlier.” Drawled the guard, clearly bored after saying the same sentences over and over again. Stepping closer, Levi,- as much as he hated to admit it- had to tiptoe slightly to look into the box. Balls of fluff, perky eared and bright eyes peered up at him. Fucking hell. Kittens.

   Muttering to himself, Levi was just about to decline the offer when the guard piped up,“You have to take on, I know you don’t want one, but its prison rules. I’ll go grab the food and litter box, pick one by the time I’m back.” Setting the box on the floor, heavy boots shuffled out and his cell door closed with a resounding clank. Squatting by the box, Levi looked inside again. Gosh, these furballs would be the death of him. Poop and pee everywhere, not to mention the fur. Stifling another sigh, he looked down to see a scruffy striped tabby wriggling itself into his lap. Beautiful green eyes looked up at him, and forepaws reached up as if asking for a hug. A thick tail, tapering to a rounded tip was moving slightly from side to side as emerald eyes continued to implore. Picking the tabby up, Levi was mildly pleased to feel its soft, glossy fur and even more pleased to see very little shedding on his prison issued jumper.

   Pleased with this forward yet demure kitten, he padded over to his bed and sat with the kitten still in his hands. “His name’s Eren” the voice of the guard startled Levi. “He’s a looker. Perfect for you Levi, he doesn’t shed too much, and is very friendly, although, I haven’t seen him that friendly with any of the other inmates yet.” Mused the guard. “I’ll settle for him then, as long as he doesn’t make a mess. If he does, he’s sleeping outside the cell.”

   Chuckling to himself, the guard placed two dishes, a small box, and a bag of food onto the cell floor. A brief explanation of care was given before the guard took the box and shuffled out of the cell. Looking back, Levi was momentarily filled with panic at where the kitten went to before he saw the tiny ball of fluff settled on his pillow. Walking over, he scooped him up and set him on the floor. Time for the house rules. “Ok you. I have to keep you, so don’t make me put you outside. No sleeping on my bed, no eating paint, and no shedding on the canvas. Poop in your box and for god sakes keep clean.” Levi swore the kitten understood him, licking his paws while staring with those haunting green eyes.

   That night came rather quickly. The kitten curled up by the corner of the cell after eating his dinner with a gusto that made Levi blanch. Somewhat pleased at how tame he was, and how picky Eren was with his own cleanliness, Levi settled down for the night. Soon Levi, soon. Was his last thought before sleep claimed him. Halfway through the night, the presence of a furry warm body was made known to Levi as Eren wriggled his way on top of his stomach and curling up into a ball. No matter how many times he put him on the floor and scolded, the little brat always managed to wriggle his way back sometime in the night. Sighing as the kitten crawled onto him for the fourth time that night, Levi gave up. There goes house rule number 1. _Good job Levi, you can rule over the most infamous gang in downtown Trost, but you can’t control a goddamn kitten._

   By the end of the first week with the kitten, Levi felt he was getting soft in the head. The furball had shattered all his house rules, claiming a spot right in the crook of Levi’s neck as he slept, and sitting in his lap while he painted. Manners impeccable, the kitten dutifully allowed Levi to wipe his paws and, if he was lucky, shower him in the communal washrooms. As much as Levi wanted to deny it, slowly but surely, the kitten was growing on him.


	2. In Other Words

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren's point of view of the events thus far.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ah gosh! Two chapters in one day! Thank you so much for the positive comments! I shall try my best to keep up the good work.

Eren:

  _“Where am I?” Eren thought to himself in a panic. Mom? Mikasa? Where is everyone?_ Last thing he remembered was walking down the street in his cat form, one he preferred over his human, getting chased by that idiot dog from down the street, running onto the road, and- oh, right. The road. He hadn’t gotten hit, so how did he end up in this box? He peeked his head up and gave a sniff. Smelled like a hospital, clean and sterile with a hint of cigarettes. Great. What were a box of kittens doing in a prison?

   Eren wrinkled his pink nose and gave a sneeze, the force of which landed him flat on his back looking up at the person carrying the box. Around him, other kittens were milling about, sniffing, purring, grooming and nuzzling. A sidelong glace told him; he was the only shifter in this box. Settling down, he looked up to see the wobbling chins of the guard before bristling and blanching. Feeling footsteps slow, Eren peeked over the lid of the box. They were entering a cell! It was dark, dank, and smelled like catnip. The inhabitant of the cell was a slender woman with an angular nose and messily tied blonde hair. Her blue eyes flashed at the guard carrying the box before he heaved herself up from the floor where she had been doing crunches. Nodding and rolling her eyes in boredom at the guard’s explanation of the kittens, she looked into the box, her piercing gaze wandering over to a small golden kitten napping in the corner. With an almost sad smile, she picked up the ball of fur before looking up at the guard, who informed her the kitten’s name was Armin. At the mention of his name, the golden kitten looked up and startled in the hands of the woman, who nodded and walked off with him without another word.

   With each cell Eren passed, he was getting anxious. The kittens in the box were diminishing with each being claimed by a cellmate. Who would he end up with? He didn’t want to be stuck here forever; he had to find some way to get out of here. With the next cell they approached, he sat back and prepared to make an impression. The cell they entered was larger than the others, and smelled of Clorox and something fresh. Paints and an easel stood in the corner along with blank and half finished canvases lining the walls. Eren peeked over the edge, fascinated by the colours and scenery. _Where had he seen that before?_

When the cell owner had made his way over to the box, Eren’s attention quickly shifted. He wanted to live in this cell, he was sure. Steely grey eyes glanced over at the box, causing Eren to mew and duck down, embarrassed and a little shy.By the time the box was placed on the floor, he was already clambering over the lid and onto the cement ground. The mysterious cellmate was squatting by the box, uninterested eyes blinking at the kittens before him. Catching a claw onto the leg of his jumper, Eren made his way onto the man’s lap. He wanted to stay here, with him. Eren wasn’t too sure why himself, but all he knew was, he needed to stay here.

   Learning the name of the inmate wasn’t too hard; he just had to listen to the guard. Holding back a mew at the sound of the guard informing “Rivaille” of his name, Eren resigned himself to wiggling his ears and waving his tail while sitting politely on the floor. Before long, he was being sternly told house rules he was to follow before being left alone by the corner.

   Come night, the solitude and cold was too much. Hesitating slightly at breaking house rules so early on, Eren decided he didn’t care. Rivaille looked so much warmer to sleep with than that stinky old canvas. Worming his way onto the bed and settling by the corner of the blanket by Rivaille’s feet earned him a soft kick onto the floor before a grumble of “No sleeping on my bed brat.” Undeterred, Eren just hopped right back on. By the time Rivaille gave up, Eren had advanced his position of comfort onto Rivaille’s stomach. Curling up and purring at long last, Eren fell into an exhausted sleep marking the first day in his new home.

   The week passed quickly. Eren found himself liking his new home despite all the restrictions. He had found a small hole by the sidewall, no doubt dug by a mouse and later enlarged by an inmate that he used to come and go, sneaking out in the dead of night before shifting by a side alley. Thank god his clothes went with him. Stretching out his back, cramped from being in his cat form for so long and testing out his toes, he made quick time, taking a short walk around the deserted back lawn of the building before sneaking back inside. Carefully dusting off his paws and coat with his paws before reentering the cell. Rivaille was very picky. Eren hated showers in his cat form. The way his fur clung to him at every which angle and the incessant itch of the shampoo drove him nuts. If he wasn’t clean, Rivaille would take him to the communal washrooms again. Shuddering at the memory, Eren cleaned with renewed fervor, grooming his fur and relishing in the way it shone afterwards.

   That morning, Eren woke to a sharp poke to his bottom. Yelping and forcing his eyes to open, he was startled to see Rivaille’s face peering at him. Looking away and stifling a yawn, Eren purred a good morning, wishing he could tell Rivaille in words instead. Perhaps it was due to his good mood from his walk the night before, or maybe just on impulse, Eren found himself giving Rivaille a gentle lick. _Ah of course. He even tastes clean._ Purring in contentment, Eren curled himself up and lay down to nap some more, basking in the care, and dare he say it; love, of his owner.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! I know lots of things were repeated, and I just realized how boring that is. Comments are appreciated!


	3. The Accident

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ah angsty. Eren and his oversensitive inner-thoughts.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry! short chapter today...forgive mee

   The accident happened that second week. Eren had snuck out on his usual night walk when he met the raccoon. The air was damp and his fur was quickly getting soaked. Storms or torrential downpours were rare; instead there was a steady, insidious drizzle that seemed to go on forever. In his haste to run to an alley to shift, he failed to notice the pair of yellow eyes that had zeroed in on him from behind the fog.

   By the time he noticed, the raccoon had already advanced. Sharp teeth bit into his tail, and with a strangled yelp Eren turned his claws onto the beast. Clawing his way out of yellow jaws, Eren dragged his battered tail to the nearest alley and quickly shifted. Upon shifting, he immediately wished he hadn’t. The pain seemed to multiply in his human form. The bite ran from his hip to his leg, blood staining his pants. The first thought that came to Eren’s mind was, _Oh gosh, how will I get back to Levi._

   Rinsing the cut with rainwater and wincing at the sting, Eren had to lean against the cobbled wall to steady his legs. He felt his vision sway as more blood seeped out. The raccoon had done quite a number, tearing flesh rather than biting. Whimpering and hissing with pain, Eren cleaned out the cut as best he could and decided to shift back. He couldn’t get back to Levi like this; he couldn’t get the floor all dirty. Shifting back, Eren felt better to see that his tail had stopped bleeding, but was now marred with drying blood and patches where his fur was torn out. Scuttling back through his usual passageway, he took care to watch his tail against the wall and pattered into Levi’s cell.

  The morning came and went. Rivaille woke, for the first time with no tiny furs in his nose. Looking around, he found Eren huddled in the corner sleeping on his side. When he approached, Eren woke with a start and backed himself further into the corner, shying away from the grey eyed man. Narrowing his eyes, Rivaille stepped forward and scooped him up, causing Eren to yelp in pain. Now concerned, Rivaille started to look his kitten over, his grey eyes widening at the blood drying on Eren’s tail. Nearly dropping the kitten in surprise, he gingerly placed him on the bed before deftly ripping a small strip off his shirtsleeve and wrapping up the kittens tail.

  Eren drifted in and out of consciousness all night, a fitful sleep disturbed by haunting dreams of those yellow eyes peering at him from every which corner. By the morning, his whole body ached. Waking from another fitful sleep, Eren was greeted with footsteps nearing his corner. He woke up immediately, trying to hide from Rivaille. He didn’t want him to see. My blood; Rivaille would hate that on his hands. He was not fast enough in his current state, reluctantly letting Rivaille pick him up. A spot of blood dotted spilled on his palm as Rivaille wrapped, and Eren squeaked before licking the spot off. His ears dropped as he chastised himself. _What a troublesome pet. I guess I’ll be sleeping by the door from now on._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So sorry for the angst. I feel that Eren would be oversensitive and paranoid about making Levi upset...poor baby.


	4. Realization

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just read over everything, and ugh, writing seems so rushed and rash. I'm so out of practice with writing, and haha what is grammar and eloquent language. I dumped more of my trash drabble...enjoy

Eren was curled up in a corner of the cell when Rivaille returned from the mess hall. Finally asleep, Eren’s soft breathing elicited soft purrs on every exhale as his curl tailed under his body to protectively. Deciding it was a perfect time to paint, Rivaille had scarcely settled down in his stool when soft murmurs could be heard from outside. At first, he ignored it; during the change between day and night shifts, the guards were always gossiping about either the new nurse -“Man you should’ve seen her, Nurse Ral is far too sweet to be working in a place like this.”- or discussing the basketball game that had supposedly been -“Impossible to win, I lost $200 in that bet!”. In this particular instance however, Rivaille’s interest was piqued, especially by something the now off-duty night guard said. 

“Yo, you should’ve seen it. Erwin almost called Head Warden Pixis over it!”

“Holy fuck, no way, old man Pixis hasn’t been here since The Titan broke out of his cell years ago!” 

“Exactly! That’s how serious it is! So apparently ol’Mike was on his rounds last night when he spotted some blood by the back alley. Human by the looks of it, but there was a scattering of fur around it, that’s what was so weird. But it gets better! There was a blood trail and some faint footprints in the back field. Mike said he followed them, but the blood suddenly disappeared and animal tracks lead into a hole in the wall. We got ourselves a ghost that bleeds blood. He nearly got his ear chewed out by Erwin this morning, poor bastard.”

“Erwin’s probably just being a worrywart. Some animal got attacked, big deal. Hopefully he doesn’t drag Pixis down here, that man drinks so much he could get us drunk just walking by.” 

“I’ll say. Surprised he’s still alive and kickin after all this time, he’s going to drink the earth dry by the time he conks out.”

Rivaille was more confused that not. Neither his unfinished painting nor the soft purrs of Eren offered him any peace. His mind was swimming. Blood, animals, ghost…attack? What was going on around here? Retrieving the small bandage he acquired in the morning from Nurse Ral, - she was indeed sweet and kind, and had a soft spot for Rivaille- he decided to check on Eren and his wound. Gingerly picking up the kitten and placing it on his bed, Rivaille ran a hand through soft silky fur waiting for Eren to wake. Absentmindedly, he whispered to himself, “Eren, was that you causing all that trouble with Mike? What happened to you, human blood? What have you done?” 

Feeling stirring underneath his fingers, Rivaille looked down to see Eren blinking bright green eyes at him. After scrambling clumsily onto all fours, Eren was sitting and looking down, refusing to meet Rivaille’s gaze. The poor kitten looked surprisingly dejected and conflicted, irritated grunts accompanied by violent thrashing of his already injured tail. 

Retying the bandage was done swiftly after Rivaille determined Eren was healing. His wound had closed some, a jazzed scab forming over teeth marks and the torn out fur not looking too bad after his tending to. 

The rest of the day passed without any mishap, order returned to Levi’s life. He painted with Eren napping in his lap, and strictly monitored the kitten’s eating and drinking. He was on laundry duty that night, and by the time he was escorted back to his cell he, ironically, stank of detergent and bleach. Laundry as well as the ordeals of the day had tired him out, and within minutes of his head touching the pillow, Rivaille was asleep. 

He was awakened in the night by rustling. He usually slept light, a skill developed after years of running a gang. Reaching under his pillow for the knife he knew was not there, Rivaille bolted up in bed and looked around the room. 

A dark figure was in the corner where the rustling was coming from. Mussed brown hair and supple skin were shown in blocks, lit up by the moonlight that filtered in from the barred windows. 

Rivaille swallowed. A figure in his locked cell? What the hell was this? People escaped from prison, not into it. Keeping his voice calm and steady he grabbed a thick book from his bedside and held it as a weapon. Whispering urgently he acknowledged the figure. 

“Who the fuck are you and what the fuck are you doing in my cell.” His harsh words hid a barely contained tremor. The figure froze and slowly straightened up, showing jagged scars that ran from the left side of the intruder’s hip down the his leg. Turning around, and face still hidden. The figure gave a small chuckle before boldly stepping into the illuminated block of moonlight. Rivaille gasped. It couldn’t be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Phew! What a cliffhanger! Please don't kill me! Let me know what you think of this chapter, and let me know of anything you want to see more/less of. I really value everyone's comments and kudos! Thank you so much for not giving up on me and please enjoy! 
> 
> Special thanks to user Dlt111 for ideas and input!


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ugh sorry this chapter is even worse (i know, you're wondering, "how is that even possible, the other ones were pretty bad already) than the previous ones. what are words

The figure that stood in front of him, half bathed in the eerie white glow of the waning moonlight, was a tall boy with tan skin and tousled brown hair. A loose shirt ghosted over his body, the collar opening unevenly on one side revealing tantalizing collarbones. Rivaille’s sweeping gaze lowered onto light, tan trousers and bare feet peeking out from under the hem. His eyes then locked with familiar green pupils that reminded him of…”Eren?” Rivaille breathed. 

The boy grinned, straight white teeth with pointy canines flashing at him. “Master Rivaille.” Eren’s voice was hoarse and rough, as if he hadn’t spoken in a while. Rubbing his eyes and muttering “Damn PTSD” under his breath, Rivaille turned away and shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts. Turning back, he half wished the boy would disappear, and it would all be a hallucination. But fate was not so kind to Rivaille. Turning back, Rivaille found Eren had stepped closer towards him, an outstretched hand that quickly withdrew once Rivaille turned around fully to face him. A light pink dusted Eren’s cheeks as he peeked shyly at Rivaille from under his full lashes. 

“Damn” muttered Rivaille. Sitting down heavily on his bed, he sighed, still reeling from the impossibility. Eren softly cleared his throat, and moved to kneel by Rivaille’s feet. 

“Master Rivaille. I- I really didn’t want you to ever find out until you got out. I…” The boy’s voice trailed off as he gulped and tried to explain as best he could. 

“You-You see…I’m kind of what you would call a shifter. There aren’t many in the world, and I shift into a cat. My mom and Mikasa, my sister, we can all do it.” Looking up to see how Rivaille was reacting, Eren was mildly pleased to see no sense of horror or ridicule in Rivaille’s ever steely grey eyes. 

Taking a huge breath, Eren continued, 

“I was up one morning and walking the road one morning, a stupid dog chased me onto the road, and I woke up in a box I this prison. Last night I was out and careless when a raccoon got me. I’m sorry I tracked dirt and blood inside, I usually wipe my paws clean before coming in, I’m really sorry Master Rivaille.” 

Eren’s words were pleading by the end of his tale, and Rivaille chuckled inwardly at his rushed and scattered explanation. Thank goodness Rivaille didn’t care for details. Sitting up and clearing his own throat, he looked at the boy still kneeling by his feet, eyes too big for his own good still staring pleadingly up at him. Giving a rare half smile, he placed his hand awkwardly in the boy’s hair, and ruffled lightly before speaking. “Listen, Eren, first of all, is that even your name? I refuse to call you by a name you won’t answer to. Second of all, strip and let me see that bite. It was healing nicely but never hurts to check. Third of all, shift back, I can’t be seen with you in my cell. Don’t worry about sleeping outside, you’re a no good furball that gets on my nerves, but your warmth is appreciated in the night. “

Eren blinked, then burst into laughter before clapping a hand over his mouth to muffle the sound. Of all the possible reactions, disbelief, anger, accusations, Rivaille had taken it without missing a beat.   
His laughter suddenly cut short, Eren grimaced and clutched his side, wincing slightly. Rivaille caught his action and walked over to the boy, finally closing the distance between them. Sweeping one hand across Eren’s shoulders and the under his knees, Rivaille effortlessly picked the boy up and carried a wide-eyed Eren to his bed and lay him down. Quick check of his wound showed through the shift, Eren had tore it open. As gentle as he was, Rivaille’s fingers pressed against tender flesh. Eren whimpered as his side ached and Rivaille watched in astonishment as striped ears and a tail materialized as Eren lost control of his shift. Deeming Eren’s wound healing and not infected, Rivaille sighed and moved his fingers.

“Eren shift back. I won’t have you walking around like this with a wound like that. As much as I would like to talk some more, you are not to shift back until you are healed.” 

With that, Rivaille turned away from the boy and wiped his hands on his jumpsuit, and refused to turn back around until Eren had shifted back.

**Author's Note:**

> ...uhm so was that bad? This is my first legit fanfic so please feel free to give me any pointers! Thank you so much for reading~


End file.
